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With technology playing an increasing role in educating our children, the internet is
fast becoming a necessary tool for children as well as educators. More and more schools
are getting websites and many of them are taking the initiative and using the internet as
it is meant to be used, for communicating and sharing information.
Even if you do not yet have a website for your school, there is some
general information about your school already on the internet. So why should
your school get it's own website?
Reasons why people will visit your site:
- To find information (parents and students looking for calendar information, a telephone
number, homework assignments, school news, activities, etc.)
- For relocation purposes, shopping for a school on the internet is something many parents
are doing these days. Many schools offer information about their curriculum, technologies,
mission, and more to show off what makes their school special.
- To view the online projects and student work. Children love to see their work displayed
and what better way to show it off to those grandparents and relatives who live far away.
- To find local information about your town, city, state. Some schools are using what is
commonly called a data warehouse where they are gathering information on a topic
and sharing it on the web where it can be used and expanded on by others.
The internet is expanding our world by opening up communication and by putting tons of
information right at our fingertips. Teachers and students are excited about using the
internet, not only for research, but for providing information to parents and other
teachers and students as well.
There is a wide variety of information that can be placed on your school site. This
article is intended to provide you with information on what
to include on your school web page and guidelines to
follow. If you need more information on how to create Web pages, check out
FloridaSMART's list of Web
Development & Programming resources on the web at http://www.floridasmart.com/subjects/computer_prog.htm.
What to include on a school
website
There is a wide variety of information that can be placed on your school site. This
article explores the various parts with descriptions and links to schools that offer a
great example for the topic.
School
Info | School Staff | Students | Parents
& Volunteers
Subjects & Specials | Local Info | Miscellaneous
Info
School Information
- General School Information
Address, City, County, State, email, internet address should always be included. This is
important information. How could a class looking for information about a particular area
find you if you don't list where you are? How could a parent relocating to a particular
town know that your town is a great place to go to school if you don't list where you are?
Some pages that link to your school may open your pages in a frame where your
internet address will not show. Then if the visitor wants to visit you again, they will
not be able to get to your site directly without going to the other site first. It is
always a good idea to show the http://youraddress to be sure visitors know how to find you
again.
- School Picture, Logo, Song
- School Announcements
- School Map
Directions, Zoning information, Bus Routes, etc.
- Virtual Tours of your school
With photos, or quicktime movies or online cameras.
- Misc. School Information
Contests, Lunch menus, etc.
- School Calendar
List holidays and early release days. You can create your own or link to your district
site, for example:
Seminole County School Calendar
is a good example as it allows various forms of the calendars for the
website visitors.
- Online News/School Happenings
Create an Online Newspaper with current information, the latest news, etc. Will the school
be open due to the storm? Does your school have a current or upcoming event where the
parents might want to know more? Everyone likes to be kept informed, especially parents.
- Mission Statement
Practically all schools have one, if it's important to you then list it.
- Curriculum and Academics
- School Handbook
The Pine
School in Hobe Sound, FL lists an excellent example.
- School Policies
- School Improvement
- School Wish List
School Staff/Administration
- Principal Message
This can include a picture with a welcome message. Some school include the Vice Principal
as well. Both should be brief.
- Staff/Administration
This should be brief with list of names and positions with email and telephone numbers.
- Teacher Pages
Teachers are getting very involved in sharing information over the
internet. Your school site can include a brief listing of teachers names
and grade levels. Or take it a step further and provide class pages, class
projects, class and homework assignments, monthly themes, and more.
Teacher pages are a wonderful addition to any school site. Teacher
profiles and teacher of the year can also be included.
Students: Activities and Projects
- Student Pages
This can be a fun part of your school site that will draw parents, students, relatives and
friends of students. Kids love to see their work displayed! So display it to the world!
(Please note: Only first names should be used and a consent form should be signed by the
parent and student. See Parent Consent) In
the upper grades, let the kids create their own pages. (Always have it
approved before publishing it to the web.) Have fun with your site and
give people a reason for coming back by keeping it current. Student pages
are fun and are an excellent addition to any school site.
- Activities and Projects
Sharing online projects provides many outstanding opportunities. It enables your school to
communicate and share information with the community, parents, teachers as well as with
schools all over the world. Shorecrest
Preparatory School in St. Petersburg has a listing of some good examples.
Parents and Volunteers
- PTO or PTA
What a great way to draw more parents into being active in the PTO or PTA. List
activities, volunteer opportunities, upcoming events and more.
- Volunteers
This is an excellent opportunity to list where volunteers are needed and to show
appreciation to the volunteers who donate their time for education.
Subjects and Specials
- Special Programs
ESOL, gifted, special needs, extended day programs, etc. Any special programs you would
like to include.
- Sports and PE
Include team records and stats, schedules (Merritt
Brown Middle School), roster and more
- Arts and Music
Online art gallery, music clubs, bands (Merritt Brown
Middle School), concert information and more
- Computer and Media
This is a common category on many school pages. Computer and Media are two common
categories on many school pages as they are easily integrated with the internet.
Local City/County/State Information
My favorite option, though unfortunately it is not very often included, is to add
information about the area where your school resides - your town, city, county, or state.
Example: Kimball Wiles Elementary,
Gainesville and The
Falcons' Nest, Alaska. A nice way to include this is as a class project or student
reports. Let your students, through art or words, educate the world about where they live.
Then if a school in Florida wants to learn about what its like to live in Alaska, not only
can they learn about it from your site, but it will also open up communication through
email between schools and children all over the world. This can be on varying
subjects including:
- Local History
- Local Culture
- Geography
- Weather
- Indigenous Plants and Animals
- Endangered Species of Florida created
by the 5th grade students at St. Thomas Episcopal School in Miami, very well done!
- Environment
- Local Government
- Community tour
- Local Attractions created by the fourth
graders at St. Thomas Episcopal School in Miami, good information, very well done!
- List community resources and local links
Miscellaneous Information
- Include anything from information about the school logo to information about a subject
that is important to your school. And again, let the students tell the stories through
their words and art.
- Favorite Links
Everyone has their favorites! Be careful what links you allow and be sure to include a
disclaimer.
- Alumni
- Business Partners
What a great way to get more businesses in the community involved in helping your
school. They will get a listing (free advertising) on your web site as a supporter of your
school.
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